My Lord Aonghas will bring his gentle, everlasting darkness to this bright world.

Rowan stared at Sèitheach for a moment and pondered.

“May I help you?” The imposing axe master inquired, feeling just a bit awkward.

“In Twilight of Princess Aislinn, you and Aislinn are childhood friends. You propose to her at the end of the book and get married. I kind of wondered how much of that is true,” Rowan replied.

Sèitheach coughed in surprise. “What?!” He was shocked. His comrades laughed at his expense.

Aislinn’s cheeks burned in embarrassment. “I told you that book has many fictional elements! I’ve never met my grandfather’s elite warriors, and that includes Master Sèitheach!” She shouted. “And we are not childhood friends! He’s centuries older than me.”

“I am also married to another, with several children and grandchildren waiting for me at home,” Sèitheach concluded after he regained his composure.

Ceallach shook his head. “Well done, Rowan. You have cooled our nerves before battle.” He correctly surmised Rowan’s goal with his strange question.

Isolde jabbed Rowan in the arm. “Yes, well done,” she joked.

A large rift, an endless abyss that threatened to swallow all light around it, opened near them. A figure in dark, jagged armor stepped through the rift. A force of more than thirty demons followed after him, and more were waiting beyond the rift.

“Eònan!” Aislinn angrily shouted.

“Who?” Rowan asked.

“The demon lord my parents fought. I was told he died in battle,” she explained, hatred and rage evident in her eyes.

“There was always doubt about it, but given your parents’ banishment, no one ever verified it,” Pàrlan explained.

Rowan drew his sword and stood ready. “The king and queen really need to clean house. The more I hear about that battle, the more I think the Danans aren’t as noble as they pretend to be.”

“I agree,” Pàrlan bitterly concurred.

Eònan slowly removed his helmet and revealed his ash-gray visage. “Ah, that child from so long ago. You still live?” His deep voice echoed across the field.

Aislinn aimed her bow at him and envisioned the satisfaction she would feel when her arrow pierced his skull. Rowan put his hand on her forearm. “Don’t let him bait you into a fight. That’s what he wants,” he warned her. “Beat him by finishing the ritual and sealing him away for good.”

“It’s what your parents would want. Finish their battle and bring honor to them,” Pàrlan encouraged her.

Aislinn gave Rowan a confident grin and put her bow on his back. “Hold this for me, I’ll want it returned later.” She held her hands out and chanted. Rowan, Isolde, and the others briefly glowed with magic. Rowan felt lighter and stronger, like he could take on a whole army by himself.

Eònan held his helmet under his arm. “Surrender yourselves to my lord, and you will be justly rewarded. Your every wish granted, your every desire fulfilled,” he turned to Rowan directly. “Your city spared my lord’s wrath.”

“You son of a-” Rowan seethed.

“Calm yourself. A warrior who rushes to battle, urged on by the heat of rage, burns only himself,” Ceallach warned him.

The sounds of Aislinn’s hushed chanting calmed Rowan’s fury. “No deal. We’ll defeat you before you ever set foot in Saoirsemer City,” he declared as he took an offensive stance with his blade ready.

Eònan grinned darkly and set his helmet back on his head. He drew a jagged broadsword and held it at his side. The demon lord raised his opposite hand and flicked his finger forward to deliver an order for his demons to advance.

Pàrlan slammed his shield into the ground and formed a grand wall between the two forces. Bríd supported his effort and formed a barrier around them. The demons rained upon the barrier, unleashing their attacks to destroy their targets. Pàrlan and Brid strained against the onslaught.

Rowan turned to Aislinn for a moment. Her eyes were closed, and her hands were clasped together in front of her. She seemed to be praying. He turned to Isolde and saw her hold her great axe at the ready. The two nodded and ran through the barrier to face the demons.

Isolde and Rowan cut through a wall of vicious creatures with metallic hides. Black ichor spilled on them as they sliced the monsters apart. Ceallach and his comrades rushed outside the barrier’s safety to join the fray.

Rowan moved faster and struck harder than before, thanks to Aislinn’s magic. He easily ducked to avoid a sickled arm and cleaved an insectoid demon in half. A clawed hand slashed across his back, cutting through his cloak and tunic. He ignored the pain and swung his blade around to bisect the feline demon that drew his blood.

He was surrounded by various types of demons, each one more than a foot taller than him. Rowan charged at one just ahead of him. His blade clashed against a sickled arm. Isolde landed behind him and beheaded the demon he fought. The two worked in sync to tear down the demons that encircled them.

A loud roar silenced the battlefield. Raghnall has risen to the sky to prepare his advance. He opened his great maw and unleashed a powerful stream of fire, incinerating the demons that gathered around the rift.

Rowan and Isolde watched the flames incinerate the demons that surrounded them. Rowan locked eyes with Eònan. The demon lord’s glowing red eyes peered into his very soul. Rowan held his sword ready and charged the demon lord.

Eònan easily repelled Rowan and threw him back with one slash of his blade. Isolde caught Rowan and helped him to his feet. Once she was certain he was steady on his feet, Isolde dashed at Eònan. She roared and brought her axe down on him. Eònan blocked her attack, but the sheer impact formed a crater at his feet.

While Eònan faced Isolde, Rowan launched another attack on him. He stabbed forward and pierced the demon lord’s armor. However, the strike was too shallow to do much damage. Eònan batted Isolde aside and delivered a mighty kick to Rowan’s chest to send him flying back.

“My Lord Aonghas will bring his gentle, everlasting darkness to this bright world. All will be embraced by it and find an eternity of bliss,” Eònan proclaimed to all who would listen.

Rowan coughed and struggled to one knee. He gripped his chest and could swear he heard a crack when he went flying. Pain flashed across his face when he tried to stand.

A roar from above drew his attention. Multiple rifts opened, and large flying demons swarmed the sky. Dragons, bats, and birds launched multiple attacks on Raghnall. He was forced to defend himself, leaving Brid and Pàrlan’s weakening barrier as Aislinn’s last line of defense.

Rowan struggled to his feet. “We’re not done yet. I won’t let you hurt Aislinn, and I won’t let you destroy my home!”

Without a word, Eònan held his sword aloft and pointed the tip to the sky. Dark clouds gathered above and blocked out the sun. Dark energy radiated from his wicked blade as he prepared to strike Rowan down.

Eònan slashed his sword downward, releasing a massive dark shockwave. Rowan moved as quickly as he could and stood between it and Aislinn. He held his sword horizontally in front of him to block the attack. The oncoming shockwave drowned the sounds of his friends calling him.